Persecuted in russia by the soldiers and others who dislike jews, rifka s family makes their way across russia to poland and the u. First travels rifka is on her way to poland from ukraine on a freight train. I learned more about jewish history from this book. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Choose from 500 different sets of letters from rifka flashcards on quizlet.
Twenty years ago i was in third grade reading my first karen hesse book, letters from rifka. It is 1919 and rifkas brother nathan has deserted the russian army. Setting letters from rifkabook project by anna dayton. She knew what it was like to miss her home and all she knew, just like i was. They start when in 1919, to avoid persecution, rifka and her parents and two older brothers have to suddenly leave russia in the middle of the night with just a small backpack and the clothes on her back. Twelveyearold rifkas journey from a jewish community in the ukraine to ellis island is anything but smooth sailing. Her family decided to leave russia and take a train to poland where. When a case of ringworm prevents rifka from joining her russian family as they emigrate to the united states, she spends nine months living in warsaw, with her care overseen by the hebrew immigrant aid society. Ms hesse is also the author of wish on a unicorn and the forthcoming lesters dog and lavender. This lesson will give you discussion and comprehension questions you can use with your. Letters from rifka audiobook by karen hesse 9781441818157. He tries to keep the family together, but do the right thing for his family.
Letters from rifka plan your schedule my group members are. We plan to read letters from rifka and meet on these dates. But she dreams she will at last be safe from the russian soldiers and. She encounters many setbacks on her journey that discourage her passage to america, and i think the best part of the book is seeing how rifka gets through these setbacks. This book is a fantastic resource if you are teaching your class about immigration.
The main characters are her brothers saul and nathan, papa, mama, tahova, rifka and sister katrina. Letters from rifka through the looking glass childrens. She carries with her a lone beloved volume of poems by pushkin. All content included on our site, such as text, images, digital downloads and other, is. Read unlimited books and audiobooks on the web, ipad, iphone and android. Then have students briefly research each country and provide relevant. Fiction, emigration and immigration, letters, jews in fiction, jews, cousins. Persecuted in russia by the soldiers and others who dislike jews, rifkas. In letters to her cousin, a young jewish girl chronicles her familys flight from russia in 1919 and her own experiences when she must. Letters from rifka is the story of a young russianjewish girl and her family who leave their homeland in 1919 to travel to america. The letters, each prefaced by a few telling lines of pushkin, tell of the fear, indignities, privation, and disease endured as they traveled through poland and into. She is the person rifka misseed most of all while she was alone. Rifka and her jewish family have fled russia for america in 1919.
Indeed it is within the pages of this beloved volume that rifka writes letters to tovah, letters describing her experiences and her feelings. In letters to her cousin, a young jewish girl chronicles her familys flight from russia in 1919 and her own experiences when she must be left in belgium for a. Get 1 credit every month to exchange for an audiobook of your choice no commitment, cancel anytime. This book has won many awards, including the national jewish book award.
But she dreams she will at last be safe from the russian soldiers and their harsh treatment of the jews in the new country. I remember being so fascinated by rifkas story i still think back to it today. Letters from rifka presents a reallife heroine with an uncommon courage and. Rifka knows nothing about america when she flees from russia with her family in 1919. Rifkas mother nathan rifkas father saul rifka rifka is brave,smart,and loving.
Because she has no spare paper, she uses the blank spaces of the. Aug 20, 2010 letters from rifka is an extraordinary book. When garnet finds a silver thimble in the sand by the river, she is sure its magical. Karen hesse is the author of many books for young people, including out of the dust, winner of the newbery medal, brooklyn bridge, phoenix rising, sable and lavender. But she dreams she will at last be safe from the russian soldiers and their harsh treatment of the. Characters letters from rifkabook project by anna dayton.
Letters from rifka by karen hesse in chm, epub, fb2 download ebook. Just when rifkas troubles should be over she finds herself facing new hardships. Based on a true story from the authors family, letters from rifka presents a reallife heroine with an uncommon courage and unsinkable spirit. Rifka and her family are so close to getting their ticket to america, but first they ahve to go through an examination by a doctor. Learn letters from rifka with free interactive flashcards. Have students use a blank world map to trace the journey of rifka and her family. Karen hesse calls letters from rifka a gift to my grandparents and to my heritage, and to people like rifka who have made the passage between two worlds. Among contemporary honors it won the 1993 national jewish book award in category childrens literature. Letters from rifka is a short childrens novel narrated by a 12 year old jewish girl fleeing russia in 1919. Also, i liked how she was the little mother of a polish baby when the babys real mom died from typhus.
This book includes an interview with the author, karen hesse. Letters from rifka is a book about a young girl from russia on her journey to america with her family. It features a jewish familys emigration from russia in 1919, to belgium and ultimately to the u. Modeled on the authors greataunt, rifka surmounts one obstacle after another in.
In letters from rifka, rifka and her family travel to many countries before arriving in the united states. Letters from rifka timeline timeline created by kittycat. The time peroid for the story was during the 1920s, the setting occured in various places. In letters to her cousin, a young jewish girl chronicles her familys flight from russia in 1919 and her own experiences when she must be left. Follow rifka as she travels to america to avoid the harsh reality of life in russia.
Twelveyearold rifka s journey from a jewish community in the ukraine to ellis island is anything but smooth sailing. Nov 08, 2014 the boy in the striped pajamas book trailer project duration. Letters from rifka is a childrens historical novel by karen hesse, published by holt in 1992. When a case of ringworm prevents rifka from joining her russian. Experiencing the letters rifka wrote to her cousin, tovah, allowed me to experience a sense of kinship. The thrilling novel letters from rifka includes content some students may struggle to understand. However, rifka encounters many difficulties along the way. As an adult, reading this book to my children was one of the most nostalgic experiences i think i have ever had. Main page contents featured content current events random article donate to wikipedia wikipedia store. Its important to lay some background knowledge early by posing these prereading questions. Read letters from rifka by karen hesse available from rakuten kobo.
When a case of ringworm prevents rifka from joining her russian family as they emigrate. Always, to help her, she has the book of pushkin poems that her beloved cousin tovah gave her. Bartoletti has taken one episode from her newbery honor book, hitler youth, and fleshed it out into a full novel. Rifka and her family are fleeing from russia to america in 1919. Because she has no spare paper, she uses the blank spaces of the book to write letters to a cousin who remains in the motherland. Are your students working on the book letters from rifka. Beginning in russia in 1919, this epistolary novel, based on experiences of the authors greataunt, tells how 12yearold rifka nebrot and her family fled the antisemitism of postrevolutionary russia and emigrated to the us.
The huge overarching moral of the story is that looks dont matter. Letters from rifka ebook by karen hesse 97814668025. She is traveling with her mother, father,and her brothers. Karen hesse is the author of many books for young people, including out of the dust, winner of the. Rifka makes the difficult journey from the ukraine to america and records the adventure, as well as her solo journey to rejoin her family after being separated from them, in a series of letters. Beginning in russia in 1919, this epistolary novel, based on experiences of the authors greataunt, tells how 12yearold rifka nebrot and her family fled the antisemitism of postrevolutionary russia and. Rifka takes a risky journey all the way to america.
For each country rifka visits, have students label that country on the map. Read letters from rifka by karen hesse for free with a 30 day free trial. This book is an indepth look at a 12 year old girls struggle to get to america from. Letters from rifka character descriptions karen hesse this set of lesson plans consists of approximately 112 pages of tests, essay questions, lessons, and other teaching materials. My favorite highlights were when rifka and her family got typhus but survived. Throughout her journey, rifka carries with her a cherished volume of poetry by alexander pushkin. They have a dangerous escape, and meet some unpleasant people along the way. The boy in the striped pajamas book trailer project duration. Jan 01, 1992 letters from rifka is a short childrens novel narrated by a 12 year old jewish girl fleeing russia in 1919. Aug 20, 2010 rifka knows nothing about america when she flees from russia with her family in 1919.
Letters from rifka character descriptions for teachers. This book waas very interesting and flowed easly as letters. From newbery media winner karen hesse comes an unforgettable story of an immigrant familys journey to america. She encounters many setbacks on her journey that discourage her passage to america, and i think the best part of the. Her family decided to leave russia and take a train to poland where they got sick with typhus and were stuck there for weeks. The book consists of a series of letters written by 12 year old rifka to her cousin in russia. Occasionally, when i grab a banana, i remember rifka laughing about how people on the island used bananas to tell if someone.
Twelveyearold rifka tells her story through a series of letters written to her cousin tovah. She has received honors including the scott odell historical fiction award, the christopher award, and the macarthur fellowship genius award, making her only the second childrens book author to receive this prestigious grant. This puts the family at great risk, so to protect themselves, twelveyearold rifka. They start when in 1919, to avoid persecution, rifka and her parents and two older brothers. When it is rifka s turn the doctor tells her and her family that she will not be able to travel to america because she has a skin disease of her head, rifka believes she caught it from the woman on the train. The book is super unique in that it is written as series of journal entries or letters.
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